MIDNIGHT

The inside of the hut was shrouded by the black cloak of night. Moonlight lanced down at the floorboards from a thin gap between the curtains, narrowing and widening as the curtains ruffled in the gentle night-time breeze. Nothing moved, save for the occupant's slow breathing. All was quiet.

Starla woke, despite the darkness and silence. She felt groggy, but at first she couldn't identify why. She stretched. Gradually, she became aware, as her nerve endings became more alert, that she was on a hard surface. She looked down and saw why: she was on the floor. Why am I down here? she thought, feeling lost. Her arm was within view and she looked at it; even in the near-darkness she could see that it was black.

That brought it back to her: she had dyed herself black. Then she had gone to show the Freedom Fighters her new colour. They had been dismissive of her, and she had stormed back to the hut, horribly upset. Yes, that's what had happened. She had cried and cried, and then curled up and gone to sleep on the floor. With this realisation Starla's face cracked into an expression of pained grief; she felt tears begin to surface again. It was so horrible! she lamented to herself, They all hate me! She shed a tear, and it coursed down her muzzle, drying up in her fur as it went.

So why are you on the floor? a part of her mind asked again. Mentally, she stalled. I'm on the floor because they upset me. It was terrible! she justified herself, and the grief clenched her stomach again. Yes, but why are you on the floor? her mind repeated earnestly. Starla felt irritable at the question; it cheapened her upset. She was on the floor because they had made her feel unwelcome!

But how is being on the floor helping? her thoughts persisted. Your hip hurts, your shoulder hurts, and so does your cheekbone. The floor's hard. It's not nice down here, it reasoned further. So why stay down here? Starla screwed up her nose, defensive in the face of this reasoning. Because my heart hurts! she retorted hurtfully. That was reason enough.

So your hip hurts, your shoulder hurts, your face hurts, and your heart hurts, Starla's mind reasoned. That seemed better. For a moment. Then: Why don't you get into bed, then just your heart'll hurt.

This logic was beginning to annoy Starla.

Alright, alright: I'm on the floor because it'll show them all how much... she began to argue before realising how flawed her point was. She looked at the bed. This morning she had hastily strightened the sheets after the night's sleep. They were crumpled, and gleamed slightly in the moonlight. They looked soft and inviting. It looks awfully comfortable up there, she thought.

Maybe it was worth it. With her lip jutting out sulkily, she got up. She approached the bed, giving it sideways glances at it as if it were mocking her, and reluctantly lay down on it, belly down. Once there she spread her wings to the sides, the better to rest. She took hold of the pillow and hugged it, making it squash up toward her face. Then, finally able to relax, she buried her chin in it. That was better.

They don't like me. They hate me! she wailed and hitched in a sob. With nothing else to distract her, more tears came, and she let them. But before she went to sleep again, she rustled her legs to remind herself of the soft smoothness of the mattress beneath her.

MID AFTERNOON

When Starla woke up again it was day. A strong beam of sunlight came in from between the curtains, where hours before the moonlight had been. The air was warm and brought with it the scent of a forest in full bloom. Birdsong chattered, threaded into the constant rustle of leaf against leaf. It was a beautiful midsummer day.

But Starla wasn't impressed. She grimaced through the curtains at the clouds that were floating shamelessly through the sky and levered herself up, supporting her weight partly on her wings. The one on the right felt sore in places and she examined it. Oh yeah, she thought flatly. I pulled feathers out last night.

Humph.

She looked at the floor where those 5 or 6 feathers sat, completely still on the floor. Reluctantly she dragged herself across to the room, indifferently aware that the feathers swirled and wafted in response to her movements, through to the bathroom, and filled the sink with water. There, she studied her reflection. If the Freedom Fighters want me to go, she thought, I'm damn well going with them to get the job done.

They would not leave her behind on the mission. Sally would not shoulder her out of it.

SONIC SATAM

Outside Sally's hut the Freedom Fighters were gathered in a group. They were making preparations to go to Robotropolis, and were just about ready to head off. The whole team was present, and at their centre kneeled a blue hedgehog.

Sonic checked the contents of his rucksack for one last time before pulling it on to his shoulders, and he was ready for the coming mission. As he did this, Sally stood to one side and ran another diagnostic on NICOLE.

"Well, I know exactly what chip we need now, and Robotnik makes lots of them," she said to the group at large. "I'm pretty much ready."

"So everyone's ready to go?" Sonic asked generally. Bunnie, Rotor and Antoine nodded and agreed. Sonic stepped out of the centre of the group and to Sally's side and the group made a complete circle. "Then let's do it to it!" he said. The others took his cue and reached in with their own hands to mirror the signal they knew so well.

SONIC SATAM

All was set: Sally was ready for this mission. They would go into one of Robotnik's production labs, get a couple of the chips she needed, and get back out. It would be a simple trip and she felt relatively untroubled. The Freedom Fighters had walked to the edge of Knothole and were about to strike out toward the polluted city when Bunnie looked back, behind them all. "Oh, for gosh sakes! Not again!" she announced irritably. Suspicious, Sally looked back, too. Just as she thought: Starla was coming after them.

The hybrid approached sullenly, without her usual overblown show of enthusiasm, and Sally remembered the previous evening. Of course! she thought to herself, Starla was upset! As the other female approached she looked from Sally to Sonic and back again. Her eyes looked dull, despite their slightly luminous quality. As she approached them she took a breath and spoke.

"Are you going to get the stuff you need?"

Sally shared a glance with Sonic and said, "Yes. We're going to Robotropolis now."

"I want to come with you," Starla replied abruptly. Sally was just wondering how to respond to this when she heard the rest of the group sigh with disappointment behind her. Starla looked at the group behind Sally and suddenly her face was like thunder again.

"Well don't blame me!" she blurted. "I didn't choose to be here and if you want to get rid of me then why don't you bring me with you so you can do it quicker?" her breath choked in her throat as she said this. Her eyes moistened and her fists clenched at her sides.

Sally was surprised by Starla's suggestion: last time she'd been here she'd thought she could lead the whole group. Indeed, she had tried, shortly before her capture by Robotnik's Hoverbots. But Sally saw that this time, Starla was different. This time the hybrid had a grim air about her, and that wasn't like Starla. Sure, Starla had many faults, but this sullen bitterness wasn't one of them. And yet, laced into the upset Sally saw something else: there was a spark of determination, too. She weighed up Starla's immaturity with her insistence; she heard the others' silent pleading not to bring the hybrid with her own sense of reason. She came to a decision.

But before she could open her mouth Sonic spoke up: "No way, Starla! Don't you remember what happened last time? You ruined our mission! You'll only-"

"Sonic," Sally interrupted quietly, but insistently. The hedgehog stopped mid-sentence, clearly surprised by her interruption. He looked at her, waiting for her to explain. "Look," she continued, trying to work out a way to convince Sonic that this would be a good idea, "Starla's asked to come along instead of following us secretly. Don't you think she has the best intentions?"

"Uh, Sal-" he began, but she was determined that, if Starla really thought she could come on a mission then she should. "Yes, I know she made some mistakes last time, but she just asked," she continued, aware that the others were looking at her in surprise behind him. "She wants to help; it's a low-risk mission and she's right - if she wants to go home then she should stay close to NICOLE. Wouldn't it make sense for her to come along?"

Sally glanced at Starla to gauge her reaction to this. Starla goggled at her. She seemed utterly shocked to have the princess speaking up for her. Sally looked at Sonic again and implored him silently to agree. His expression turned to one of stony defiance; he clearly wasn't keen. He looked at the hybrid again for a few seconds, his expression softened, and finally he relented.

"Okay, okay," he said heavily with his hands up. "Let's bring her along," he added offhandedly and sloped to the head of the group again. And with that, the Freedom Fighters continued silently on their walk in the direction of Robotropolis.

SONIC SATAM

The thick miasma above Robotropolis caught the evening light dramatically, throwing reds and purples and fiery yellows across the skies. Starla saw it and her jaw dropped, for she was amazed by the view. It's so colourful! she thought in a daze. The sunsets aren't this bright back in Knothole. As she thought these things, she carried on walking without looking where she was going and blundered straight into the back of Bunnie.

"Hey, watch were ya'll goin'!" Bunnie snapped irritably. Starla gasped and instinctively leapt backward in response. The two regarded eachother for a moment. Then Starla took a breath to make a retort but before she could, Bunnie folded her arms significantly, robotic arm proud. Starla stalled: she didn't want to risk another punch from Bunnie. Oh, screw you! she thought, and decided not to persue the matter any further. As the rabbit turned away Starla glared at her back and allowed herself to filter through to the rear of the group.

They passed through the gates of Robotroplis without incident, but Starla, who was too busy glumly watching the French guy's ankles as he walked ahead of her, barely noticed. She was being led by people who didn't like her, so that they could get rid of her sooner. She felt her eyes moisten again and her ears dipped. It's not fair! she thought. Why can't I get anybody to like me? Why did I come here?

"Hoverbots!" Sally called suddenly from up ahead. Starla shook herself free of her thoughts to look up into the sky again. What? Where?

Around her, the others burst into action. Starla stood stiffly in fear, for the moment unsure of what to do. She watched the French guy scramble for cover and hide behind a metallic shell. "Starla!" Rotor hissed on her other side and she looked over at him. "Over here!" he added urgently, waving her over sharply. She scurried to his side and ducked. Sonic was there too, and she was vaguely aware of him rummaging around in his rucksack, but the Hoverbot was swooping right by them and it was such a scary sight she could barely take her eyes off it. She watched as it swung around and came back for another look.

Then Rotor and Sonic stood up beside her, a rope with a hook attached in each of their hands. "Incoming!" Rotor called to Bunnie, who was doing the same over the other side. Starla watched as the three of them began to swing their ropes.

All three of them released their hooks at the same moment and caught the back of the Hoverbot. Half of it carried on flying... but half of it did not. Starla craned her neck and then flinched as the flying part crashed to the ground, destroying itself completely; the caught half dropped like a stone as she wrenched her head around to see. Its windows shattered, sending out glass shards that spread around their feet and twinkled. The bodycase lay still.

"Way to go, man!" Sonic congratulated Rotor and they high-fived eachother. Starla was amazed; she'd never seen the like of it before! Buzzing from the Freedom Fighters' triumph, she looked at Rotor as he gathered his rope back into a coil with a dilerious grin on her face. He looked dispassionately back at her for a moment, then unhooked his gaze from hers and sought out Bunnie instead. She whooped happily and the pair slapped eachother on the back. With a spring in their steps, the group gathered together and carried on their way.

Starla stumbled after them, looking from one Fighter to another in wonderment. She felt inspired by what she had just seen and she wished she could do that, too. Sonic's shoulders rolled confidently as he strode onward; and she watched him. You're so brave, Starla thought breathlessly. You're amazing.

Next to him, Sally looked around behind her for a moment with a worried expression on her face, caught sight of Starla and relaxed. "Come on," she called lightly, "it's this way," and Starla felt her limbs pull her forward without her conscious direction.

TO BE CONTINUED...